


the incident with the faculty members and Umi's trauma

by yoshizora



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-09
Updated: 2016-05-09
Packaged: 2018-06-07 10:14:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6799678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yoshizora/pseuds/yoshizora
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>a....... high school au?</p>
            </blockquote>





	the incident with the faculty members and Umi's trauma

“I wasn’t even _expecting_ to walk in on something like, like that, the _things_ they were doing I wouldn’t even imagine—“

Eli takes a deep breath through her teeth. Sonoda Umi is one of her favorite students, no doubts there, but sometimes she’s just… a little too much. It’s rare, but when it happens, it happens like a storm. She’s still babbling even when it’s made clear that Eli is starting to tune her out for a brief pause to gather her own thoughts.

“Please calm down, Sonoda.”

“I’m sorry, Ayase-sensei. But I’m still in _shock_ , I—“

“Yes, of course. I’ll send you to the nurse’s office, but tell me what exactly happened from the beginning again. Slowly, this time.”

This time, it’s Umi’s turn to take a deep breath. She presses a hand to her chest and grips the edge of Eli’s desk until her knuckles turn white, squeezing her eyes shut and making her whole face screw up like she had bitten into a lemon. Seriously, this girl.

“I went to the supply room on Kousaka-sensei’s request for more markers, and when I opened the door,” she shudders, disturbed by revisiting the memory. “Coach Hoshizora and Nishikino-sensei were… they were k-k-k-k-“

Eli calmly holds up a hand, signaling Umi to stop before she gives herself an aneurysm. “Thank you, Sonoda, that’s enough.”

“That’s not the worst part!” Umi suddenly stands in a fit of… something, but not anger. Maybe desperation? “On the way here I passed by Toujou-sensei, and I tried to tell her about what I saw, but she _laughed at me!_ What’s wrong with the teachers at this school?! Ayase-sensei, you’re my last hope!”

Something suddenly occurs to Eli. “Did Toujou tell you to come to me about what you saw?”

“Yes. That was the only helpful advice she offered, really…”

Of course Nozomi did. The news will probably spread around the school like wildfire tomorrow, but nothing will happen aside from the usual slaps on the wrist, the rumors will eventually die down from disinterest, and Umi will forever be traumatized by what she had seen. Or Umi will spend the rest of the school year complaining about it to everyone who will listen. Yes, her favorite student indeed. Eli leans back in her seat and resists the urge to put her feet up on her desk.

“I’ll talk to them about this. Now go back to class, Sonoda.”

—

The first time Eli had been invited to a work party, it was the home economics teacher who had been the one to carry the invitation. She was also the one to pick up Eli from her apartment, and she was the one who dragged her back when the others decided to see how well the new foreign teacher could hold her alcohol (it didn’t end very well for Eli).

That was a little embarrassing, but it was also a surprisingly solid start to their friendship. Apparently, it was also an open invitation for Nozomi to mercilessly tease Eli whenever she felt like it, even in front of other students.

She sits right on Eli’s desk before the other woman can even think to tell her to mind her personal space. With a small resigned sigh, Eli allows Nozomi to remain where she is, and carries on like everything’s normal.

“Kotori-chan’s not gonna do anything harsh to them. She’s too nice.” Great, it’s just like Nozomi to dive straight into the hot topic of the day like that.

A little too conspicuously, Eli looks to the other side of the room. Just like Nozomi, Rin is lingering at Maki’s desk where the latter is failing at pretending to do actual work, just like Eli. The parallel is a little uncanny, but Eli fails to take note of that.

“What kind of message are we sending to the kids?”

Nozomi casually shrugs. Sometimes Eli has a hard time deciding when she’s being sincere with her concern. “Just let them talk. Rin-chan doesn’t mind.”

“Yes, but what about Maki?”

“She’s cute when she’s embarrassed.”

Eli frowns and sets aside some papers she had been idling over. “Their relationship shouldn’t be out in the open like this. What if the parents find out?”

“All this talk of _relationships_ had me thinking…”

“Nozomi, you’re dodging my point.”

“How do you feel about unwinding with some drinks later today?”

“It’s _Wednesday._ Stop trying to change the subject.”

Right then, Maki stifles laughter at something Rin had said. She goes quiet when she spots Eli and Nozomi watching them; she loudly coughs and pushes Rin off her desk, motioning for her to shoo.

“They’re so cute,” Nozomi smiles and puts a hand to her cheek like a swooning teenage girl. “What do you think?”

“What do I think of what?” Eli, tipped to the point of exasperation, crosses her arms and scowls. “I have papers to grade and your class is starting soon.”

“Okaaay, okay. Consider my offer for drinks after school, alright?” Nozomi ducks down to peck Eli on the top of her head. The sudden gesture only earns a confused blink, before Eli’s turning her attention back to the stack of papers she had put aside. Nozomi could be so strange, sometimes.

Maki rolls her eyes in disgust.

—

“Ayase-sensei?”

Oh, great, it’s Umi again, most likely with more complaints to bring. No— Eli shouldn’t think of it like that. The incident with Rin and Maki is probably still putting her in a bad mood, that’s all, and taking it out on a student would be poor conduct. She smiles and looks up at Umi. No one else is in the teacher’s room, so it’s just the two of them.

“Yes, Sonoda?”

“I think…” Umi’s face is turning red, an ominous precursor of a storm to come. Eli braces herself before the girl blurts out, “I believe that Toujou-sensei has inappropriate intentions directed towards you! I thought you ought to know!”

… So that’s not as bad as she was expecting. At least it’s not more news about teachers having illicit affairs during school hours. “Sonoda, you’re probably just stressed from yesterday’s incident.”

“No, I truly believe you’re in danger!”

Eli has to remind herself that Umi Sonoda has the top marks in the whole school and is one of her favorite students.

“Look, the principal already spoke with Nishikino-sensei and Coach Hoshizora, and we can all promise that nothing like that will happen again—“

“It’s not about that anymore! Please, sensei, you have to be careful!”

“Nozomi isn’t even—“

Umi lowers her voice and urgently whispers. “She has been making _eyes_ at you!”

Eli turns her chair to the side to properly face Umi, biting her lips and tapping her fingers against her chin. This is getting out of hand. “Are you worried you’ll find me and Toujou in the supply room, next time?”

“Please don’t joke about that kind of thing…” Umi’s face is still bright red, clashing oddly with the deep blue of her hair. “To think of you and- and- and _Toujou-sensei,”_

“Isn’t it lunch time? Go eat your lunch with your friends.”

“But—“

“Thank you for looking out for me, Sonoda, but I promise you that I’ll be fine.”

—

Despite Eli’s continuous protests that it’s a school night, Nozomi still somehow manages to rope her in for drinks at the same restaurant where Eli had gotten embarrassingly drunk that one party. And, of course, Rin and Maki tag along as well as if it wouldn’t be awkward at all considering the latest buzz around the school.

Well, it was probably Rin’s idea to come, and Maki ended up being dragged just like Eli.

The parallel is _still_ uncanny and yet Eli _still_ doesn’t notice it.

“Some of the students are being real brats about the whole thing,” Maki’s trying so hard to act like she’s not bothered by the elephant in the room at all, even though she’s the one who pointed it out in the first place just now. “That short one, Yazawa? She wouldn’t stop laughing at me about it. The nerve…”

“Maybe you should have thought more carefully about your decision to rendezvous with Rin in the supply room, then?” Eli coolly flips her menu over and Maki steams.

“It- it wasn’t _my_ idea!”

“Yep, it was mine!” Rin proudly declares.

“Nice!” Nozomi fistbumps Rin across the table.

“Don’t do that.” Both Eli and Maki say at the same time. They catch themselves and Eli offers an awkward smile, but Maki still looks pissed.

“As if you two are any better! Constantly flirting in the teacher’s room, in the halls, even in the classroom…”

Eli blinks. “… Excuse me?”

“Yep, we’re all friends here! Just that some of us are _better_ friends than some,” Nozomi winks, slinging an arm around Eli’s shoulder to stop her from shooting a retort back at Maki.

“Right. You two need to do a better job of keeping your relationship out of work.” Eli doesn’t bother shrugging Nozomi off.

Rin and Maki exchange glances and mutually decide not to correct Eli.

—

The next morning, Eli finds a note on her desk in the teacher’s room addressed to her in familiar, uniform handwriting.

_Ayase-sensei,_

_Please remember my warning from yesterday._

_Respectfully,  
_ _Sonoda Umi_

She sighs, tucks the letter away into a drawer, and goes about her day.

—

“How did you get through Maki-chan’s thick skull?” Nozomi wistfully sighs. “Sometimes it’s a wonder how oblivious Elicchi can be. Even the students know what’s going on.”

“You just gotta go for it!” Rin pumps a fist in the air for effect. “That’s what I did!”

“So the supply room…”

“Oh, Maki-chan seemed kinda stressed so I was helping her blow off some steam.”

“Did it work?”

“Yep! Until Sonoda walked in on us, then Maki-chan got even more stressed.”

—

That Sunday, Nozomi invites Eli out for dinner and drinks without Rin and Maki or any of the other teachers. Eli probably doesn’t even realize she had just been taken out on a date, but Nozomi figures it’s funnier that way.

—

“Ayase-sensei!!” Sonoda leaps out at Eli just before she reaches the school gates. Eli nearly drops her bag.

“Sonoda?!”

“I heard about the other night,” Umi breathlessly says, her eyes uncharacteristically wild and fists clenched. It takes a moment for Eli to realize what she’s referring to, and she stops herself before she slaps her own forehead.

“You mean… when I had dinner with Toujou? Who told you about that?”

“Toujou-sensei told Kousaka-sensei, who told Nico, who told Hanayo. Nico and Hanayo told me as we were walking to school together this morning. ”

Oh, god, Nozomi’s spreading rumors to the students. Or maybe it’s Honoka’s fault? Eli pinches the bridge of her nose and pats Umi’s shoulder as reassuringly as she can. “Look, Umi. Believe it or not, but teachers are allowed to have social lives. It’s hardly the end of the world.”

“I don’t mean any disrespect, but you’re falling right into Toujou-sensei’s trap.”

“This is getting out of hand. Go to your class before the bell rings, Sonoda.”

Umi looks like she wants to say something else, but she bites her tongue and runs off with as much dignity as she can muster. Eli watches her go and she furrows her brows together. Was Umi calling her clueless?

Later, as she continues to muse over it at her desk in between classes, Nozomi finds her again as usual. Honoka is sitting at her desk alone hunched over some papers, but she’s clearly trying to eavesdrop so Eli pointedly keeps her voice lowered. That’s probably pointless.

“Why are you spreading rumors about us to the entire school, Nozomi?”

“What rumors?”

“The rumor that we went out on a date!”

“But it _was_ a date, Elicchi. We’ve been dating this entire time.” Nozomi says matter-of-factly.

Eli opens her mouth, closes it, opens it again, closes it, and keeps it closed. She stares straight ahead past Nozomi. At her desk, Honoka snorts and accidentally dribbles spit on some unlucky student’s homework she’s grading.

“Um.”

Nozomi leans down to kiss Eli on the top of her head, just like she always does, and beams. “I’ll leave you to think about that, ‘kay?”

“Um.”

She leaves the room, and Eli is left to stare at the wall like a fish as Honoka openly chortles.

—

“Well, you _did_ kiss Nozomi in front of everyone back at that party…” Kotori’s good at holding back her laughter, unlike Honoka. Eli wants to scream but she doesn’t need people talking about suspicious noises coming from the principal’s office in addition to the current trending topic. “It was during karaoke. You took the microphone, dropped it, and tried to sweep Nozomi off her feet. She fell on top of you, but neither of you didn’t seem to mind.”

“But I was drunk! … I was drunk. дерьмо, I was _drunk_ , that explains so much.”

“Mmhm. It was a very, _very_ enthusiastic kiss, too. You thanked her for being “smokin’ hot”, from what I remember.”

“Thank you, Minami-san. You can stop there.” Eli slowly sits down and covers her face with her hands. Figures that she’d end up going to the principal for help in the end. There really wasn’t anyone else amongst the staff she could trust to give good advice, and she had entertained the thought of speaking to Umi, but that’d be… weird.

“We all thought you knew for a little bit, but when we realized, Nozomi asked us to keep things the way they were. I think she was just having a little fun, so don’t be mad at her?”

“I’m not mad!” Eli cries out. “I’m just confused!”

“I don’t mind teachers having relationships, but I think everyone can learn from the incident with Nishikino and Hoshizora,” Kotori solemnly folds her hands together. She’s really quite good at masking her expressions. “If you two plan to do anything, make sure it’s at least where no one will see.”

Eli screams into her hands.

—

Once lunch arrives and the students slowly disperse for food, a gleefully cackling Nico storms to Umi’s desk with Hanayo following in her wake.

“I knew it! Ayase and Toujou are finally officially hooked up!”

Umi chokes on a mouthful of rice and has to be thumped on the back. She waits until her face returns to a normal color before pressing the matter, not that she wants to, but she _has to know_. But deep inside, she knows. She already knew all along. Ayase-sensei is such a hopeless case. She may be the most hopeless teacher in the whole school, come to think of it.

So much for being Umi’s role model.

“Nico, I’d rather not hear anything about it.”

“She already told me four times.” Hanayo sighs.

Nope, Nico’s having none of that. They’re gonna listen whether they want to or not. “I saw them doing it… right behind the school! Gross, right?! Toujou didn’t even have her shirt on and Ayase was all over her—”

Umi screams into her hands.

—

The next week, Eli and Umi pass each other in the hall. Neither slow down, and both keep their heads held high. Eli offers a curt nod and Umi grimly nods in return.

They won’t speak a word of it.


End file.
